It has a 35x optical zoom lens with a focal range extending from 24mm to 840mm.

The lens construction is comprised of multiple special lens elements, including an Ultra-low Dispersion (UD) element, alone with a Hi-UD element, which are usually used for professional cameras. This helps maintain a high quality image across the entire zoom range.

Canon has equipped the PowerShot SX30 IS with the most effective image stabiliser (IS) ever to be used in one of its compact cameras, offering up to 4.5 stops of compensation.

This system can minimise blur when shooting with a long zoom and when the use of a fast shutter speed is not possible.

The new Zoom Framing Assist function helps users to keep track of distant or moving subjects when shooting with long zoom.

It quickly retracts the lens to one of three preset zoomed-out positions while a rectangle marks the area of the originally zoomed in frame, letting the user view more of the scene to find the subject.

Once the user reacquires the subject and positions it back into the rectangular frame, the lens quickly extends back to its zoomed position in order to resume shooting in its original framing.